New Delhi: Harsh Vardhan Shringla, India’s Ambassador to the US, has been appointed as the new foreign secretary, according to a Personnel Ministry order issued on Monday.
Shringla is a 1984-batch officer of the Indian Foreign Service (IFS).
He will take charge of the foreign secretary on 29 January after incumbent Vijay Keshav Gokhale’s “two-year term” ends a day before, the order said.
The appointment was cleared by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to the order by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT).
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A career diplomat, Shringla has been in the service for 35 years. He was instrumental in organising Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the US this September, during which the blockbuster ‘Howdy, Modi!’ was organised.
Prior to being appointed ambassador to the US in January 2019, Shringla was India’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh. It was during his tenure that New Delhi and Dhaka forged deep ties post the 2015 land boundary settlement.
A graduate of St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University, he had earlier worked in the Corporate and Public Sectors in India prior to joining the Indian Foreign Service. He also headed the United Nations Political and SAARC Divisions in the ministry.
Shringla is fluent in French, Vietnamese and Nepalese apart from English and Indian languages. He is married to Hemal Shringla and has one son.